George R.R. Martin talks book ending, Game of Thrones series finale
Will there be some similarities between the end of the book series and the end of the show? It certainly seems that way, judging from what Martin wrote in a recent entry on his Not a Blog. With that being said, though, he also hinted at differences, while reminding readers that he has characters aplenty who are in his medium that never show up in the show at all:
I am working in a very different medium than David and Dan, never forget. They had six hours for this final season. I expect these last two books of mine will fill 3000 manuscript pages between them before I’m done… and if more pages and chapters and scenes are needed, I’ll add them. And of course the butterfly effect will be at work as well; those of you who follow this Not A Blog will know that I’ve been talking about that since season one. There are characters who never made it onto the screen at all, and others who died in the show but still live in the books… so if nothing else, the readers will learn what happened to Jeyne Poole, Lady Stoneheart, Penny and her pig, Skahaz Shavepate, Arianne Martell, Darkstar, Victarion Greyjoy, Ser Garlan the Gallant, Aegon VI, and a myriad of other characters both great and small that viewers of the show never had the chance to meet. And yes, there will be unicorns… of a sort…
Book or show, which will be the “real” ending? It’s a silly question. How many children did Scarlett O’Hara have?
How about this? I’ll write it. You read it. Then everyone can make up their own mind, and argue about it on the internet.
To this day, Lady Stoneheart in particular is one of the most popular book characters to never quite be utilized. While we certainly had Catelyn Stark, her death at the Red Wedding was the formal end to her story on the show. There are also some characters who ended the show still alive who died in the books long ago — there are some liberties that need to be taken when you have a limited amount of TV story to work with, especially when there are also certain characters who TV viewers fall in love with. Brienne of Tarth is a fantastic example of this, as she ended up becoming one of the most-popular characters on the show, really to the point where her importance far surpasses anything that we saw within the source material.
For fans of the HBO franchise, just remember that — this is a franchise. There is almost a 0% chance that the network is going to be willing to abandon this entire property when it’s making them so much money, even with a polarizing series finale. There is still most likely going to be a prequel … and perhaps more than one. We also suggest in our own finale review (subscribe to CarterMatt on YouTube for more after you watch it) that there is going to be room for an Arya spin-off series where she explores some of what is currently uncharted on maps. That just comes down to whether or not the network can find a way to get Maisie Williams back and if there a real interest in continuing this tale from her point of view.
For more on the Game of Thrones finale…
Be sure to visit the link here, as that is where you can get some more news in regards to the ratings for the final episode. Also, we want to know from you: Has Game of Thrones inspired you to read the books, if you were not a reader beforehand? Share in the comments. (Photo: HBO.)